Craig Coxe
| birth_place = Chula Vista, CA | draft = 66th overall | draft_year = 1982 | draft_team = Detroit Red Wings | career_start = 1984 | career_end = 2000 }} Craig R. Coxe (born 21 January 1964 in Chula Vista, California) is a retired professional ice hockey player. In addition to playing in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, St. Louis Blues, and the San Jose Sharks. Coxe also played two seasons of major league roller hockey in the RHI. Playing career Coxe was selected in fourth round (66th overall) in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft by the Detroit Red Wings. Unable to come to terms with Detroit, he became an unrestricted free agent after the 1983-84 season and signed with the Vancouver Canucks. Coxe played for four different NHL teams over eights seasons in the NHL. Best known as an enforcer, Coxe played in 235 NHL regular season games, scoring 45 points and racking up 713 minutes in penalties. Coxe was suspended for the first three games of the 1987–88 NHL season for leaving the penalty box to fight Joe Paterson during a pre-season game against the Los Angeles Kings. While perhaps best remembered as a member of the Vancouver Canucks, Coxe was claimed from the Canucks by the San Jose Sharks in the 1991 NHL Dispersal and Expansion Drafts and, on October 4, 1991, he scored the first goal in San Jose's franchise history, ironically, against the Canucks. It would be the next to last goal that he would score in the NHL. Coxe vs. Probert While not known as a play-maker, Coxe was known as a willing fighter at the NHL level. Coxe's fights with Bob Probert have been referred to as "two of the biggest toe to toe slugfests of all time" . Coaching career During the 1999-00 season, his final year as a player, Coxe was playing with the San Antonio Iguanas in the CHL. Before the season's end, Coxe was named the assistant coach for the team. The following season Coxe was named head coach of the CHL's Huntsville Tornado. Coxe was also the head coach of the CHL's El Paso Buzzards for their final season in 2002-03. During this season, the team's owner, Bill Davidson, had declared bankruptcy. Despite not being paid for over a month, and even though at times he was able to dress only 9 or 10 players, Coxe continued to coach the team to the season's end. References External links * * * *HockeyFights.com: Q & A with Craig Coxe *HockeyFights.com: In Depth with Craig Coxe Category:1964 births Category:American ice hockey players Category:Belleville Bulls alumni Category:Calgary Flames players Category:Cincinnati Cyclones players Category:Corpus Christi Icerays players Category:Detroit Red Wings draft picks Category:Fredericton Express players Category:Huntsville Channel Cats (SHL) players Category:Kalamazoo Wings (1974–2000) players Category:Kansas City Blades players Category:Living people Category:Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) players Category:People from Chula Vista, California Category:Peoria Rivermen (IHL) players Category:Roller Hockey International players Category:St. Albert Saints alumni Category:St. Louis Blues players Category:San Antonio Iguanas players Category:San Jose Sharks players Category:Tulsa Oilers (1992-present) players Category:Vancouver Canucks players Category:Wichita Thunder players de:Craig Coxe